Revision as of 10:53, 29 June 2007

We encourage you to share your success stories. Please email the following information to sister.libraries@gmail.com: Names of libraries, primary contact person, address, phone, email, webpage, and a brief description of the partnership.

Amesbury Elementary School / Ebussamba Primary School, Kenya
20 South Hampton Road
Amesbury, MA 01913
(978)388-3659
Population Served: 8500 Kenyans
Contact: Gerri Fegan or Deborah Welch
Email: feganpkt@comcast.net
Web Page: www.amesburyforafrica.orgSister Library Success Story: The Ebussamba Primary School Library
School library programs are blooming like rainforest wildflowers in Kenya. Through the United Nations Sister Communities Program, Amesbury has been able to share its resources with the village of Essabalu, Kenya for the past fifteen years or so. What began as a medical assistance program has grown into a culture awareness effort that includes the primary school library in its range of concern. For almost six years, Amesbury Elementary School has worked with the headmaster of the Ebussamba Primary School to raise funds to build the school library (from bricks that Esabalu families made), to purchase books for the classrooms and the school library, and to build glass windows with shutters to keep the books safe and dry. Upon the library's completion, furniture was built for the reading room and the stacks and the water project brought water to the school for the first time. All of this is spearheaded by our local community association, Amesbury for Africa. Students at Amesbury Elementary and families throughout the community have benefited greatly from this relationship. By having the annual fundraising book swap, our school families have become familiar with the families in Kenya and have developed a sensitivity and generosity to our sister school that is often written about in our local newspaper. We also have had exchange students at Amesbury High School, and have been visited by the headmaster of Ebussamba Primary. This level of character education and "thinking globally" has been thoroughly integrated in the school library curriculum. Several members of Amesbury for Africa visit the community in Kenya each year, and in the summer of 2005, I traveled to Esabalu to train classroom teachers to take on the responsibility of the school library. It was a remarkable moment: the books were in need of repair, but the determination of these new librarians was abounding. Librarians from the Massachusetts School Library Association sent maps and brochures for teachers and students to learn about the world, and they were posted on the walls for all the students to see. In the year and a half since my visit, local universities have initiated library training courses for local teachers. It seems that the value of community and school libraries has grown since primary education tuition throughout the country has been removed. Amesbury's current project is to develop a micropublishing business in the community to preserve local folklore in regional dialect, and to encourage reading for pleasure in schools and homes. Obviously, fundraising will be our top priority.
Last updated: 6/7/07

Rockwell Elementary School Library / Greenfield Elementary School Library
Spanish Fort, AL
UNITED STATES
Contact: Gayle Robinson Title: LibrarianSister Library Success Story: Rockwell Elementary School Library in Spanish Fort, Alabama, made a connection with the Greenfield Elementary School in Prince Edward Island, Canada. "We invented our relationship as we went along," writes librarian Gayle Robinson, "sharing information on our areas, sending Chamber of Commerce information, etc. I had given some demographics of our area and was very fortunate to find Greenfield Elementary School such a close match to our area. Over the course of the year, children from both schools exchanged letters and some packages, [Greenfield media specialist Gail Finniss] and I were in contact often, and I kept our teachers informed. This project was confined to the 2nd grades at both schools. Our children were surprised to receive one group of letters written in French, which my library clerk was able to translate for them." Community response was positive: there were several newspaper articles relating to the project, and the library received a $500 grant from a local women's club to purchase Canadian library books, which "have proven to be very popular with the whole school, not just 2nd grade." The two libraries have kept in touch this year as well. "My husband and I have long talked about a trip up the East Coast to Canada and it looks like we will finally make it this year. I hope that while we are there we will be able to meet Gail and possibly visit her school. This project has been a lot of fun and is still in progress."

University of Florida / University of Zambia
P. O. Box 100206
1600 SW Archer Road Gainsville, FL 32610
UNITED STATES
Phone: (352) 392-4016
Web Page: http://www.library.health.ufl.edu/Sister Library Success Story: The University of Florida Health Science Center Library (UF) and University of Zambia Medical Library (UNZA) sister library program is based on concern for health care issues that impact on public health throughout the world. This project has emphasized access to biomedical information for health care workers in a developing country. While originally concentrating on print material, the program has evolved into utilizing the Internet and other new information technology components. This sister library match began in April 1992. During the first six months, the project emphasized MEDLINE searches and document delivery of journal reprints. The two libraries then concentrated on supplying requested documents and building a journal reprint collection based on key subjects suggested by the UNZA staff. During the ensuing years, the two Libraries worked on expanding the delivery of library materials. In January 1997, the Libraries began developing an Internet based collaborative project. This situation has led to mutual growth - the wealth of assistance in many forms given to the UNZA library has made it one of the most important medical libraries in Africa and the first to have it own Internet Home Page.

North Shore Country Day School / Maria Pino Suarez Elementary School
310 Green Bay Rd.
Winnetka, IL 60093
UNITED STATES
Phone: (847) 446-0674
Contact: Barbara Castilla
Web Page: http://www.nscds.pvt.k12.il.us/Sister Library Success Story: Several years ago, Barbara Castilla, the Head of the Foreign Language Program at North Shore Country Day School in Winnetka, Illinois, went to Oaxaca and enjoyed her visit so much that the next summer she took her children to Oaxaca. When she told her Spanish students about her visits, they asked if she could take them also. Through a special summer grant program funded by parents at the school, Barbara took a group of students to Mexico in 1997. As part of their tour, they visited a school in Xaaga, a small village outside of Oaxaca. The students were struck by the contrast between what they had at North Shore Country Day and what the Maria Pino Suarez Elementary School had. When they returned home, they raised enough money through sales and donations to buy new desks, repair the roof and put windows and doors on the school. In summer 1999, Barbara received another enrichment grant and took a group of students to Xaaga again. This time, the project was to start a library for the school. Nancy Figel, Librarian for the Middle and Upper Schools went along to help organize and catalog the 250 books purchased for the library. Because there was not enough space in the school for a library room, the books have to be kept in a storage room. The volunteers from the U.S. (including Nancy's mother and step-father), volunteers from the village and the Mexican students built portable book shelves that teachers could fill with books to take to their classrooms. The students, faculty and staff at North Shore Country Day School want to continue their "Sister" relationship with Maria Pino Suarez Elementary School. They hope to continue adding to the library, providing school supplies and doing whatever they can to improve the facilities at the school. Maria Pino Suarez only goes through sixth grade and because the cost of traveling to the next level school in a neighboring town is too expensive for most of the students, they usually stop their education at the sixth grade. North Shore Country Day School is looking for ways to raise the money for a scholarship fund that would help the Xaaga students continue their education.

Highland Park Public Library / Ferrera Public Library
494 Laurel Ave.
Highland Park, IL 60035
UNITED STATES
Phone: (847) 432-0216
Web Page: http://www.hplibrary.org/Sister Library Success Story: Highland Park (Ill.) Public Library has a Sister Library relationship through Sister Cities International with the library in Ferrera, Italy. The librarian from Ferrera visited Highland Park in 1992, and the director of the Highland Park Library visited Ferrera in 1993. The Highland Park Public Library has hosted photographic displays from Ferrera. The library's participation in these events has brought people in to the library, earned coverage in the newspapers and in newsletters, and has been a way to get to know townspeople involved in various organizations. Participation also has been stimulating for staff, who have discussed the difference between the libraries and what they can learn from each other.

Queens Borough Public Library / Shanghai Library
89-11 Merrick Blvd.
Jamaica, NY 11432
UNITED STATES
Phone: (718) 661-1233
Contact: Stuart A. Rosenthal
Web Page: http://www.queenslibrary.org/
Partnership Founded: 1997Sister Library Success Story: Queens Borough Public Library (QBPL) in 1997 became the first U.S. public library to sign an exchange agreement with a library in China, the Shanghai Library. This agreement already has provided substantial benefits: a loan exhibition (Shanghai Library Treasures: Historical Rubbings and Letter, held in July 1998), the exchange of library materials and a staff exchange (two QBPL librarians spent two months in Shanghai, and two librarians from Shanghai spent three months in New York learning about QBPL). Queens also has provided its library users, many of whom read Chinese with a direct link to the Shanghai Library through the Queens WorldLinQ multilingual site. In late 1997, QBPL signed an agreement with the National Library of China in Beijing. most likely its first such agreement with a public library. Update, May 2007: In June 2006, the Queens Library implemented a 24/7 virtual reference platform with Shanghai Library entitled CORS (Collaborative Online Reference Service). This service is available globally and without a library card. Teams of Chinese and English-speaking librarians from both systems assist Chinese speakers to communicate, via e-mail, with librarians, researchers, and industry specialists from public, academic, and research libraries in China, Hong Kong, Macao, Singapore, and the US. An English language interface is currently under construction. To access CORS, point your browser to www.queenslibrary.org, click on "Chinese language interface" and follow the link that says CORS.
Also in 2006, the Queens Library received an initial donation of 300 titles, and will continue to receive 100 new titles annually, as the first US participant in Shanghai Library's "Window on Shanghai" worldwide promotion. Subjects include China's and Shanghai's past and future, including literature, history, economics, tourism, cooking, medicine, and philosophy. The collection has been shelved in a specially designated area of the International Resource Center and is identified by distinctive signage and individual bookplates.
Last updated: 5/30/07

Crandall Public Library / Saga City Municipal Library
251 Glen St.
Glens Falls, NY 12801
UNITED STATES
Phone: (518) 792-6508
Web Page: http://www.crandalllibrary.org/Sister Library Success Story: Crandall Public Library in Glens Falls, N.Y., has had a Sister Library relationship with the Municipal Library in Saga City, Japan, since 1995. Crandall Public Library has established a permanent exhibit of fine arts and local crafts from the Saga City area. In 1996, the director of the Crandall Public Library traveled with a Sister City delegation to Saga City to celebrate the opening of a new 238,000 square foot public library. On August 8, 1996, the two libraries signed a treaty of cooperation as Sister Libraries. The residents of both communities have developed an appreciation of each other's culture and an understanding of each other as people.

The Swarthmore College Library / University of Ghana, Legon
500 College Ave.
Swarthmore, PA 19081
UNITED STATES
Phone: (610) 328-8477
Contact: Peggy Seiden
Title: College Librarian Web Page: http://www.swarthmore.edu/Library/index.htmlSister Library Success Story: The Swarthmore College Library is establishing a sister relationship with the University of Ghana, Legon. The College has had a relationship with the International Center for African Music and Dance (ICAMD) at the University of Ghana through its academic program in the Department of Dance since 1995. In the summer of 1999, Peggy Seiden, College Librarian, went to visit the University of Ghana with Sharon Friedler, Professor in the Department of Dance. Since their return, Seiden and Friedler have collaborated on a proposal to fund a project on the documentation of ethnographic dance. The ICAMD at the University of Ghana possesses an archive of valuable material on African dance, but lacks the funding to fully document the resources for the sake of both access and preservation. Peggy Seiden and Sharon Friedler's proposal involves two approaches. One will focus on the development of complete documentary records for video and film currently housed by the ICAMD. The other will concentrate on the production of such material in the field and the factors/proscriptions which field workers should consider in their recordings.

Darlington County Library / Darlington England Public Library
204 N. Main St.
Darlington, SC 29532
UNITED STATES
Phone: (843) 398-4940
Contact: Sue Rainey
Title: Director
Web Page: http://darlington-lib.org/Sister Library Success Story: Darlington, USA to Darlington, UK. The Darlington County Library, South Carolina has established a "Sister Library" program with the Darlington, England Public Library. This is a new initiative of the American Library Association and the Darlington Library is the first in South Carolina to reach an agreement with it's sister library. In his reply to our suggestion for a sister library agreement, Peter White, libraries manager for Darlington Borough Libraries, England stated "We will be very happy to participate in your suggestion for an information sharing programme between our two libraries. We are enthusiastic and think both library services will gain from this contact." Both libraries have started the program by sharing basic statistical information, such as number of items in the collections, size and population of the county, number of staff, etc. Our children's librarians have already began to exchange ideas and programming information. It is also hoped that we will be able to exchange genealogical information and Internet technology. In the future we also want to exchange visiting librarians. Information will be primarily exchanged by e-mail initially. A web link to the Borough of Darlington, England has been added to the Darlington Library (SC) web page so that interested patrons may find out more about this beautiful and historic town. "A program of this type is only limited by the imagination and we hope to take full advantage of this opportunity", stated Darlington, SC library director Sue Rainey. If you would like to know more about this program, visit the Darlington County Library web site at: http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Parthenon/2023/ or contact Ray McBride, Systems Administrator mcbrider@infoave.net or 843-398-4940.

Austin Public Library / Saltillo Public Library
Austin, TX
UNITED STATESSister Library Success Story: Saltillo, Mexico and Austin, Texas share a unique history as the "two capitals" of Texas, and reflecting these historical ties, Saltillo has been Austin's sister city since 1968. On April 28, 2001, the Austin celebration of Día de los niños/día de los libros was honored to host a visit by Saltillo children's author and storyteller Magdalena Sofia Cardenas García. Her visit to Austin was sponsored by the Mayor's Office of the city of Saltillo as part of the cultural exchange with the Austin-Saltillo Sister City Committee. As executive director of Museo de Desierto, Coahuila, Ms. Cardenas García launched an innovative museum education program to prepare children as museum docents. She read from her children's books and took part in a book exchange with the Austin Public Library and city leaders. Saltillo and Austin have sister libraries through the International Sister Libraries Program. Saltillo was the capital of Texas when its territory was part of the Mexican state of Coahuila, before Austin became the capital of the Republic of Texas. A variety of exchanges between the two cities have focused on government, culture, education, business, and athletics. The Austin-Saltillo Sister City Committee has also hosted several annual conferences of the International United States/Mexico Sister Cities Association.

Texas A&M University Mary & Jeff Bell Library / Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey Centro de Información Biblioteca
6300 Ocean Drive
Corpus Christi, TX 78412 UNITED STATES
Web Page: http://rattler.tamucc.edu/Sister Library Success Story: Texas A&M University (Corpus Christi, Texas) Jeff & Mary Bell Library has had a Sister Library relationship with the Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey Centro de Información Biblioteca (Monterrey, Mexico) since 1996. The libraries exchange materials through interlibrary loan. Each semester, a staff member from one library visits the other library for one week. Since 1996, three staff members from each institution have participated in the staff exchange. Some staff members have developed e-mail pen pals. For example, one librarian in Monterrey is helping a librarian in Corpus Christi lean written Spanish by correcting her e-mail messages.

Brigham Young University Lee Library / Ecuador and GuatemalaBenson Agriculture and Food Institute
Brigham Young University, 110 B-49
Provo, UT 84602
UNITED STATES
Phone: (801) 378-2607
Web Page: http://benson.byu.edu/TheInstituteSister Library Success Story: Ezra Taft Benson Agriculture and Food Institute supplied materials, the Brigham Young University Lee Library supplied expertise, and the community supplied labor to build one-room libraries in Salitron, Chiquimala, Guatemala; Chanco, Chiquimala, Guatemala; Corral de Piedras, Chiquimala, Guatemala; and San Nicolas de Tunshi, Chimborazo, Ecuador. This endeavor has opened new avenues of communication for BYU librarians with other campus faculty, and with other libraries in the United States and South and Central America. The people in Ecuador and Guatemala now have libraries that will assist them with their immediate reference and literary needs. It is hoped that their agrarian practices may be further enhanced through the use of these libraries.

Mahnomen Public Library / Biblioteca Comunale Tesero
via Noval, 5
Tesero, 38038ITALY
Phone: (046) 2814806
Contact: Elisabetta Vanzetta
Email: tesero@biblio.infotn.it
Web Page: http://www.valdifiemme.it/biblioteca.tesero
Partnership Founded: 2003Sister Library Success Story: We exchange information about our activities and our work. Now and then we send each other informational materials about these activities. Ms. Lois Schaedler, librarian at Mahnomen Public Library, came to Italy in October 2003 to visit my library and see directly my work in a small library that is part of a library system.
Last updated: 5/30/07

New Westminster Public Library / Quezon City Public Library
716 6th Ave.
New Westminster, B.C., V3M 2B3
CANADA
Phone: (604) 527-4660
Contact: Ron Clancy
Title: Director
Web Page: http://www.nwpl.new-westminster.bc.ca/index.htmSister Library Success Story: The New Westminster Public Library signed a Sister Library agreement with the Quezon City Public Library in the Philippines last October. The two cities had recently signed a sister city agreement and New Westminster Library Director Ron Clancy approached his counterpart in Quezon City who got approval from her Board as Mr. Clancy did with his. The agreement was signed by the mayors and City Librarians of both cities during the first visit from New Westminster to Quezon City. Their most practical project to date is the collection and shipment of books from New Westminster to Quezon City. Through the generous support of a local transportation company, New Westminster has been able to ship hundreds of pounds of books at no cost to the Library. The books were selected based on a profile supplied by Quezon City, giving their areas of greatest need. Books are mostly donations as a result of community solicitation that would otherwise go into New Westminster's book sale for fundraising. In return, New Westminster expects to receive books about the Philippines and its people which will aid them in serving their large local Philippino community.

Universidad Autonoma de Ciudad Juarez, Mexico / New Mexico State University and El Paso Community College
Avenida López Mateos 20
Apartado Postal 1594-D
Juárez, Chihuahua, 32310
MEXICO
Web Page: http://www.uacj.mx/Sister Library Success Story: Universidad Autonoma de Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, has borrowing agreements, publications exchange, acquisition sharing and staff exchanges with New Mexico State University libraries and El Paso Community College libraries. This transborder collaboration has enabled all three libraries to better serve the information needs of their communities.